ORLANDO, Fla. — It didn’t take coach Frank Beamer long to realize that the Rutgers team Virginia Tech will face tomorrow in the Russell Athletic Bowl bears no resemblance in any way, shape or form to the Rutgers teams the Hokies dominated from 1993 to 2003 in Big East play.

For 11 straight years — all under Beamer then, too — Virginia Tech manhandled Rutgers when both were Big East members, winning 11 straight games against the Scarlet Knights before heading to the ACC.

In their past seven meetings, the Hokies won by an average of 37.1 points.

"They’re for real. They’re a really good football team," Beamer said of the latest Rutgers team he has been watching on tape. "We used to play them in the Big East and I’ve told people this isn’t the same Rutgers team we used to play in the Big East.

"They’re a much more talented team and they’ve done a good job of getting talent in there and coaching them up. This is a good football team."

Anyone who remembers the old Rutgers-Virginia Tech series might not recognize the Hokies, either.

The 6-6 record ended a run of eight straight years of 10 wins or more and marked their the worst finish since the program’s last losing season in 1992.

They also needed to beat 2-10 Boston College and 4-8 Virginia in the final two games just to be bowl eligible for the 20th consecutive year.

• At least three Rutgers players have their sights set on moving up on the school’s career lists tomorrow. Fifth-year senior linebacker Khaseem Greene needs 14 tackles to finish No. 3 on the all-time list, while senior Mark Harrison needs two touchdown catches to tie Tim Brown’s school record of 20 for a career.

Third-year sophomore wide receiver Brandon Coleman needs one touchdown catch to set the school single-season record (he is tied with Marco Battaglia with 10) and also has 16 career touchdowns receptions for his career. He is well on pace to own the career record sometime next season.

• Virginia Tech safety/rover Kyshoen Jarrett, a one-time Rutgers recruiting target, was a high school teammate of reserve Scarlet Knights fullback Sam Bergen at East Stroudsburg South in Pennsylvania.

The Hokies have one New Jersey native on their roster — co-starting TE Ryan Malleck of Point Pleasant Boro High. Rutgers doesn’t have a Virginia native on its roster.

• Rutgers running back Jawan Jamison, the MVP of last year’s Pinstripe Bowl, admitted he’s more eager than usual to play tomorrow — largely because it marks the first time in nearly six weeks that he will be at full strength. The third-year sophomore was hobbled by an ankle injury the final three regular-season games.

"I’m 100 percent healty — finally," he said. "I’ve been waiting to say that for a while."